1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an air conditioner of the carrier type wherein all of means for forming the cooling cycle can be housed in a body of the air conditioner and the air conditioner body itself can be carried to any optional position in a room which is to be cooled.
2. Description of the Related Art
There is a case where the space of a room which is to be cooled by heat exchange may be small although the room itself has a relatively large space. In other words, the space of a room which is to be cooled by heat exchange is sometimes wanted to change it smaller or larger.
It is advantageous in this case to use such an air conditioner that enables all of means for forming the cooling cycle to be housed in a body of the air conditioner and the air conditioner body itself to be carried to any optional position in the room.
An example of this carrier type air conditioner is disclosed in the Japanese Utility Model Publication Sho 52-17969, for example.
The air conditioner body of this carrier type is divided into cooling and machine chambers by a partition wall and the cooling chamber houses an evaporator, a cooled air blowing fan and the like, having at the front side a grille through which air in the room is sucked and another grille through which cooled air is blown out. A compressor, a heat exchanger of the air cooling type which is a heating condenser, a sprinkler means, a heat exchanger of the water cooling type which is an evaporating condenser, a water tank, a pump and the like are arranged in the machine chamber, which has at one side a grille through which heat exchanging air is sucked.
The water cooling heat exchanger, the sprinkler means, the air cooling heat exchanger and the like are enclosed by an air collecting cover. A casing in which a fan is housed is connected to a discharging opening of the air collecting cover. The casing is provided with an air exhausting opening to which a flexible exhausting pipe communicated with outside the room is connected.
A coolant, high in temperature and pressure, discharged from the compressor is introduced at first to the air cooling heat exchanger and then to the water cooling heat exchanger where it is condensed in the case of this air conditioner. The pump is driven at the same time and water is sprinkled over the water cooling heat exchanger by the sprinkler means while applying pressure to water in a water tank. The water sprinkled is evaporated while taking heat from the water cooling heat exchanger and introduced to the air cooling heat exchanger by which it is heated to raise its temperature and lower its relative humidity. The fan is also driven and heat exchanging air introduced into the machine chamber through the heat exchanging air sucking grille is cooled while exchanging heat with the water cooling heat exchanger. It is mixed here with vapor of the water which has been sprinkled by the sprinkler means and evaporated, to become air of high humidity including a large amount of vapor and then introduced to the air cooling heat exchanger. The mixed air, high in humidity, is heated while exchanging heat with the air cooling heat exchanger to raise its temperature and lower its relative humidity. The air of high temperature and humidity after the heat exchanging process is guided to the casing along the air collecting cover and exhausted outside the room through the air exhausting opening and pipe.
The air cooling heat exchanger exchanges heat with the air of high humidity and the water cooling heat exchanger exchanges heat with the water sprinkled by the sprinkler means and the heat exchanging air sucked. The coolant is condensed in this manner.
All of heat to be discharged from the air conditioner which serves as an air cooling machine is exhausted outside the room through the exhausting pipe. This enables the air conditioner body to be located at any position in the room. The air exhausted outside the room has been heated by the air cooling heat exchanger to lower its relative humidity to some extent, but it is air high in temperature and humidity and also high in thermal density. Therefore, no water drop is condensed on inner faces of the casing and air exhausting opening and pipe through which it is passed.
In the case of this air conditioner, however, it is disadvantageous that the efficiency of heat exchange is low particularly in the air cooling heat exchanger. The air cooling heat exchanger is located above the water cooling heat exchanger with the sprinkler means interposed between them. The air cooling heat exchanger is located downstream the water cooling heat exchanger in an air passage through which the heat exchanging air is passed from the heat exchanging air sucking grille to the exhausting pipe by the fan driven. This causes air, which comprises mixing vapor of water sprinkled over the water cooling heat exchanger by the sprinkler means and evaporated with air introduced by the fan to exchange heat with the water cooling heat exchanger, to be introduced to the air cooling heat exchanger. This mixed air has a temperature considerably higher than the temperature in the room which is to be cooled, and it also has an extremely high humidity.
On the other hand, the coolant introduced to the air cooling heat exchanger just after it is discharged from the compressor is high in temperature and it must exchange heat with the mixed air which is relatively high in temperature and extremely high in humidity. Therefore, the efficiency of heat exchange in the air cooling heat exchanger becomes low, thereby making it difficult to lower the temperature of the coolant to a predetermined value.
As the result, load is excessively added to the water cooling heat exchanger in the course of heat exchange and the amount of water in the water tank used up is considerably increased and the amount of water evaporated in the course of heat exchange is increased accordingly. When the amount of water remaining in the water tank becomes a little, it must be added. The cooling operation of the air conditioner must be stopped while water is being added to the water tank. This causes the time period, during which the cooling operation is continued, to become short and the number of times, at which water is added to the water tank, to be increased. This is trouble- some and the temperature in the room which is to be cooled is raised every time the cooling operation is stopped, thereby making it difficult to keep the room comfortable.
Further, another factor which causes the efficiency of heat exchange in the air cooling heat exchanger to be lowered is the amount of air selected by the fan to blow or send humid air. When the amount of air blown out by the fan is too much, the humid air sent from the water cooling heat exchanger is passed through the air cooling heat exchanger without sufficiently contacting the air cooling heat exchanger. Namely, there is a fear that water drops in the humid air are exhausted outside the room through the exhausting pipe without exchanging heat with the air cooling heat exchanger. When the amount o air blown out by the fan is too little, however, the amount of water drops evaporated while the heat of the humid air is being exchanged with the air cooling heat exchanger exceeds that of water drops newly sent. These water drops are left not evaporated, remaining between fins which form the heat exchanger. This causes the efficiency of heat exchange to be lowered in the air cooling heat exchanger.
Still further, the air cooling heat exchanger is at all times in high humid air which is almost vapor, and it is thus contacted with water drops. This causes the fins to be eroded in a relatively short time period.